Meow

I seem to be having a leopard print... thing. It's really kind of sneaked up on me, I'm not sure how it happened. It started last year when I bought these:

Because, really, every girl needs to pretend she's Zsa Zsa Gabor every now & then.

These are actually hair calf, so they're a little fuzzy, and they have the skinniest, wickedest heels. (Cole-Haan is really good at the stiletto -- my pearl pink peep-toes are also wicked skinny in the heel.) So I love these shoes, they make me giggle. I think they are best worn with something relatively basic, preferably all one color, or something really simple like a black skirt and a white blouse. (And a big, chunky gold necklace. Wheeee!)

And then, last month, I saw this dress in Vogue:

(Anna Molinari, Spring 2007)

It was in a feature with some impossibly tall, skinny model cavorting around Rio with Lapo Elkann. (I can't decide if Lapo intrigues or horrifies me -- whichever it might be, he is very into his clothes and for that, at least, I think he's pretty cool.) I don't know why I was so taken with it, I just was. (To begin with, the model in Vogue looks quite a bit less my-dog-just-died than this tragic little starved Slavic number from the Molinari runway show, who makes me not want to wear anything other than a shroud. God. I get depressed just looking at her, don't you?) I loved the trapeze shape and the open shoulder. I didn't love the super-short length, asymmetrical hem (I frown on asymmetrical hems as a general rule, especially that dreaded 70's holdover, the handkerchief hem), or the over $2000 price tag (!!!), but I just for some inexplicable reason felt like I needed this dress. Not having two grand to toss around (especially since I'm on a No Buy right now) and having some slightly-better-than-rudimentary sewing skills, I decided I was going to make this bad boy myself.

First, I needed to find a pattern. I knew it was unlikely that I was going to find an off-the shoulder pattern, so what I was most concerned about was the trapeze shape of the dress. I found this one and thought it would do:

(New Look 6352)

I found some great, perfect poly/rayon charmeuse animal-print fabric on sale -- that was a stroke of luck, because this dress is very dependent on being the right fabric. The shape is so simple that the material has to be just right to keep it from being a complete yawn.

I knew I'd have to add some length to the sleeves, but that's not hard. This pattern (as with most patterns these days) comes in multiple sizes, so my plan was to cut out the neckline in the largest size on the pattern so that it would be nice & wide. Unfortunately, when I was cutting I kinda lost track of what I was doing & cut the entire dress on the largest size, which resulted in having to take in the side seams a couple of times and having to re-cut and re-set the armholes and sleeves... well, more than once.

(The why of the re-cutting & -setting is important enough to get its own paragraph. Yes, the idea of the dress was to be trapeze-shaped and float easily away from the body. However -- it could not be a tent. The way you get away with a big breezy shape like this without looking like you're wearing something three Bedouins & their camels could sleep under is to make sure that it fits you like mad through the shoulders and bust, and doesn't get all nice & loose until it's past that point. Hear me now & live by this later -- if it doesn't fit you in the shoulders, it doesn't fit you. Period. Trust me.)

Suffice to say it took me much longer to make this dress than it should have, given the simplicity of the pattern. I did add some of my own touches, like several rows of stitching around the neckline & sleeves:





This gives it a little dimension & detail without competing with the pretty busy fabric, and has the bonus of making the neckline a little stiffer so that it stands away from the body a bit. No zipper, no buttons -- pull it on over the head & it's done. Great, easy, floaty summer thing.

So here's the result:



It's also awfully cute with my little red patent skimmers, if I want to wear it with a flat shoe. In the fall, I'm thinking this is going to be darned adorable with a heavier tight and an ankle boot.

End of the day, it set me back less than 20 bucks. This is a very good thing. I do like a good $20 dress.

All in all, I'm pretty happy with it. What do you guys think? I'm feeling like the animal print thing is going to be pretty big for the next couple of seasons, and I like it. How are the rest of you feeling about the Big Meow?

Photos: Style Spy, Style.com, Simplicity.com

Treasure -- June 6

I found this jacket a couple of weeks ago at one of my favorite vintage dealers. She was having a sale, so the silly thing cost me less than 15 bucks and I absolutely fell in love with it. (Don't worry, this was before I went on my No Buy -- I didn't break the rules.)


Look at the bracelet sleeves! The adorable little bows!!



Odd color, though. I'm not entirely sure, to be frank, what the heck to wear with this little sweetie. I do have an idea: I have a great little champagne-gold metallic knit tank and I'm thinking a pair of very wide-legged pants, maybe linen. (I'm going to make them, not buy them, so again -- not breaking the No Buy!) But what color? Black I don't like with it -- too harsh. I'm not going to try to match the turquoise; and if I did, that would be a little too matchy-matchy even for me, who is at heart a very matchy-matchy girl. I'm leaning toward a good, neutral khaki. What do you think? I need some suggestions here.

On the same shopping excursion I found this:



Deliriously wonderful purple wool coat with silver mink collar. I'm not even going to tell you how cheap this thing was (30 bucks), it was criminal. This is not for me, by the way -- I sourced this for a friend/client in the UK. And she is going to be the warmest woman in Reading come winter -- it weighs about ten pounds. There is another layer of wool fabric between the outer layer and the silver silk lining. I broke a sweat just trying it on. But isn't it wonderful?

So, tell me what you think about pants for the little jacket.

Photos: Style Spy

I Got Cuffed in New York City

I'm a big fan of the cuff. As I've mentioned before, I tend to go for big, statement-y pieces of jewelry, and a cuff can definitely be that. My wrists are pretty much the only small, semi-dainty part of my body these days, so as much as I like the look of bangles, I often find them uncomfortable. They, well... they bang around on my wrist. (Hence the name, I guess.) I talk with my hands a lot, so this is a consideration. The whack-clank-bonk gets a little tiresome after a while. A cuff usually fits closely enough to my wrist that this isn't a problem, and I like that. A couple of years ago in Paris I was in a Cecile et Jeanne boutique (Check out the website. I've said it before & I'll say it again, the French do costume jewelry best.) and found a really gorgeous cuff there that my heart cried out for. My wallet cried, too, at the idea of the thing, because as I recall it was pretty spendy, and I didn't get it. I can't quite conjure it up in detail anymore, but I remember that it was an enormous (probably about 4" wide) gold filigreed thing. The idea of it has stayed with me all this time, I just loved it. When I was in NYC last month, Grand Central Station was having this very charming little Spring Fair in one of the hallways. It was just like a little street fair, with lots of artisans and crafty types hawking their wares. There were a lot of the same old embellished t-shirts and tote bags made of upholstery scraps, but there was also some really good stuff, like a jewelry designer named Selen, who sold me this:


It's not actually a cuff, it's a linked bracelet


but I still loved it. Plus, it was terribly reasonable -- 35 bucks. Selen was so charming and her things were so beautiful and well-priced that I also bought this


Isn't that fantastic? Selen's jewelry is made of pewter, in my case gold-plated (I don't wear silver). You should really check out her website, she has some gorgeous things and again -- very, very reasonably priced. For best results on the website, click the "Catalogue" link on the bottom left corner. That gives you the most complete view of her wares. I don't think she's set up for e-commerce yet, but there's a contact button & I'm sure she'd be happy to sell you things via phone or e-mail. I've been seeing a lot of great cuffs lately, here's a few I really like. Click photos for links.

Ooooh, beautiful. Expensive, but bee-yoo-tee-ful.

Kenneth Jay Lane, maker of much good stuff.

A lower-commitment version of the KJL

Great googly-moogly, how gorgeous is that? Ohhhh, with a white strappy sundress and a tan -- divine!

Similar idea, with hinged closure & unbeatable price.




Insanely spendy, but a gal can dream, can't she?

And as usual, pretty much anything on this page would be an appropriate gift for the Style Spy, just in case you're wondering. I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'...

Photos: Style Spy, NeimanMarcus.com, Nordstrom.com, Avenue.com, FrancescasCollections.com

Style Spy's Swimsuit Post

Foxy.

It's that time of year -- every magazine I pick up is crammed to the gills with articles on swimsuits. How to choose one, what's the perfect shape for your body, what to look for in a swimsuit, how to pack them, blah blah lycra fishcakes blah. So I figure I'd better stay current and do what the market demands. To that end, here is Style Spy's Swimsuit Post.

Swimsuits. I don't like 'em. I haven't bought one in several years. I think it's ridiculous to spend $300 on four triangles of fabric that aren't even sewn together, they're tied. I'd just as soon never look at another swimsuit for the rest of my life.

Here endeth the Swimsuit Post.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Vrooom!

I can't stop giggling.



These shoes are by Nascar. That's right, the race car people. It's not actually a bad shoe, in theory. Your basic black patent pump. But the devil, as you know, is in the details:



Subtle, non? There's even a little surprise on the bottom of the shoe:



This one is actually quite cute:



Little pink patent & suede ballet flats -- who doesn't love that? But again, you must pay close attention:



My question is, who are they making these shoes for? Because, not for nothing (and please don't bother to scold me for my ignorance of Nascar Culture -- that's the way it is and the way it's going to stay), but the photos I've seen of most Nascar fans don't... exactly... scream "Fashionista," if you know what I mean.

Let's face it, we're talking about a lot of denim cut-offs and bad perms.

Now, I am not here to redress the fashion crimes of a million screaming people with gimme caps on their heads (would that I could!). I'm just wondering about the marketing gee-nee-uss who came up with these things. Did someone in some Nascar meeting somewhere pop up and cackle, "The women's dress shoe market is ripe for the picking!" while rubbing his hands together in Snidely Whiplash-esque evil genius glee? I guess these shoes are for the Nascar fan for whom the pajamas, socks, hats, t-shirts, jackets, sweatshirts, handbags, and jewelry aren't enough. I guess these are for the fan who says to herself, "I want to tastefully proclaim my love for all things Nascar." And I suppose I should be grateful for that, because there are Nascar Crocs out there, my friends.



See? That's not the worst shoe I've ever seen, not by a long shot. That's a shoe that you wear when you go out salsa dancing with your dashing Nascar driver boyfriend after a long day at the track breathing in exhaust fumes & picking cinders out of your well-coiffed hair.

It is a slippery slope, however. And as you fall, you bounce past these questionable items:



then skid past these, covering your eyes:



opt not to grab onto these horrors even if it meant saving your life:



and finally land in the mud at the bottom of the hill:



Ow.

Photos: Zappos.com

Edit: Evidently my bloghero Manolo and I are on the same page: check out his take on this topic, published yesterday as well. Great minds and all that.

The Red Shoe Diaries, Part 2

There they are: the Manolo Blahnik Dodos, the object of my great desire, the shoes that have the Want Monster gnawing on my poor little overtaxed heart. I've been pinching the pennies, but I'm realistic: I knew that they might not be available by the time I saved up the money to buy them. So I started doing a little research on how I might be able to scratch that itch if the worst-case scenario played itself out. In an effort to provide a tiny amount of entertainment along with my ever-lengthening saga, I'm going to show you some of the things I found while on that search. Click photos for links.

Moda Spana Canyon

So I get the heads-up last week from Ted (my co-conspirator in fabulous footwear) that the Neiman Marcus pre-sale is going on. Saturday I went up to NM with my girlfriend Anita, who is wonderful to shop with because she always displays just the right amount of tact & practicality: she doesn't want you to get in over your head, but she also doesn't want to spoil your fun. Now, I knew that the Austin NM didn't have the Dodos, but that the Dallas store did, so Ted got out the stockbook & gave it to me to look through so he could do the pre-sale on the computer & have them shipped -- IF they were going on sale.

(The stockbook, by the way, is a giant three-ring binder with page after page of every shoe ordered by any NM branch in the country -- for me, that thing qualifies as porn. Seriously, I would like a copy to keep in my bedside table. I left sweaty fingerprints all over it.)

When I found them in the book, Ted said, "Oh my gosh!", disappeared into the stockroom, and came out with a Manolo Blahnik box in his hands. (Whoops. Better show you some more shoes...)

RSVP Skye

He opened the box and there they were. A return. Someone had ordered them online and then brought them back to the store. AND? They were on sale. I was quivering as I put them on, but alas, they were too small. My toes hung over the sides. And then the even worse news, which Ted delivered after he checked the computer: there are no more. It was a very popular shoe, there are no more to be found anywhere in the system. Crushing heartbreak. Oh, it was so sad, because they are sooooooo beautiful. I put them back on, just to be sure, but Anita reminded me that shoes need to fit. (It's funny how basic truths can desert you at times such as these.) Sad, sad, sad. I'd waited too long.

And so we drove away from Neimans. I was wistful but resigned. Anita posited that the Universe was perhaps saving me from a tragically turned ankle, but I couldn't bring myself to believe those magnificent shoes would ever treat me so cruelly. I consoled myself with the idea that somewhere out there was another pair of shoes I was meant to have instead, in the way that my disappointment over the Manolo Blahnik Camparis had eventually led me to my wonderful Miu Miu mary janes.

Nine West Ferwin

I came home and sent an e-mail to Sian detailing my disappointment, which, because she is a good Shoe Sister, she shared. And then for some reason (seeking closure, perhaps) I went to the NM website. Now, way back when after I fell in love with the Dodos, I put them in my Shopping Bag on the NM site so I wouldn't have to always search for them, I could just click there to find them whenever I wanted to kill a few minutes gazing adoringly. (The NM site holds on to stuff in your bag until you buy it or remove it.) When I signed on, there it was, the little red heading that said I had one (1) item in my bag. I clicked, and what to my wondering eyes should appear, but my shoes. ON SALE. In all available sizes. Stunned. Stunned! I sent Sian a panicked e-mail asking what I should do and she very sensibly replied, "Buy them. Now." (She is English, after all. They're always so good in a crisis.)

And so I did.

I do not know how this happened or why the Shoe Gods are rewarding me in this way. I called the store and told Ted and he explained that the stock for the online stores is completely separate from the b&m ones, and he kicked himself for not thinking of checking online himself, but I don't see what good that would have done because if it hadn't been in my Shopping Cart I wouldn't have been able to find them online -- they're not listed on the NM site anymore. (They are still available on the Bergdorf Goodman site, but they are not on sale there.)

Via Spiga Dracora. Golly, that's a good-looking shoe, isn't it?

This is very mysterious to me. If I use the link that's still in my browser history, or the one in my order confirmation, up they pop. But going through the actual NM site or even googling the style name on the web doesn't turn it up. Very strange. But I'm not questioning it overmuch, I'm just happy it has come to pass. A happy red Manolo ending. Shoe satisfaction. Over the next week, I'll be hyperventilating every time a UPS truck pulls into the parking lot. Oh, there is going to be one massive Happy Shoe Dance around here.

One last word: Style Spy is done buying for the summer. I very much want to return to Paris this fall and therefore I need to save my centimes. I'm counting on all you friendly folks to help me stick to this resolution. I am NOT allowed to buy any more shoes. (Okay, if I'm IN a shoe store, and the shoes I'm wearing explode, and between me & my car there is a river of molten lava spiked with shards of broken glass, I'm allowed to buy shoes to get me home. But that's the only case.) And why would I possibly need any more? The shoes of my dreams are coming to live with me! Footwear Nirvana. Seventh Shoe Heaven. I am One with the Shoeniverse.

Photos: NeimanMarcus.com, Zappos.com

Funky in the Good Way

Aaaaaaw, yeah!!! Looks like His Purple Majesty is putting out a perfume.

It's called 3121 and the website bills it as a white floral with bergamot, jasmine, gardenia, orange flower, muguet, tuberose, ylang ylang, with basenotes of patchouli, sandalwood, cedarwood and musks. (Only they use much more picturesque language -- I've eliminated a lot of adjectives and romance-novel verbs. Swirling and whatnot, doncha know.) I'm down with that -- put jasmine, bergamot, tuberose & cedar all in the same place and I'm there. There's a concert in Minneapolis and a charity event tied in to the perfume release (07/07/07), and evidently Himself is playing in London for three weeks. Let's cross our fingers and hopes he tours the States, too.

I've long been a big fan of Prince. I wouldn't exactly want to raid his closet, not that I could fit into anything in there anyway, the man is... is it polite to call a man "petite"? But no doubt about it, he has style. It's a little (ahem) over the top and not exactly (ahem, again) subtle, but I've gotta give it up to anyone that fearless. He knows who he is, he knows what he likes, and he's by gummy gonna wear it. That's the sort of thing I like to see.

And sniff, by the sound of things.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get my funk on.